Aftermath of a Tragedy; How Can Athletes Help?

The shoes that Titan’s RB Chris Johnson is wearing on Monday Night Football to honor the victims of Sandy Hook Elementary School

As of late, America has become all to familiar with unthinkable events that keep us grounded as human beings.  Whether it be a mall shooting in Oregon, a massacre in Aurora, Colorado, or the most recent tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut.  These sadistic events have a way of bringing life to a harsh reality and providing us with a new perspective. 
Sports are generally perceived to be a game;  played for fun, the joy of competition.  It’s a past time for people all across the world, regardless of race, sex, religion, ethnicity, or any other way you can diversify the human race.  However, after the sobering horror that transpired at Sandy Hook Elementary School, sports become obsolete.  As a sports fan, it seems secondary to everything, yet it somehow serves as relief from the emotional roller coaster that many of us experienced on December 14th, 2012. 
Walking amongst us are the athletes that play the sports we love; the games we watch to step out of the mind boggling reality of last Friday’s events.  These athletes are gifted to a level that fans can’t quite imagine, and they are compensated in the same manner.  With that, I have a lofty suggestion of these athletes.  It’s easy for myself to say this as the average joe, living pay check to pay check, not so secretly jealous of these ultra elite athletes making millions of dollars to play a game.  But I make this suggestion for one simple reason;  these athletes are on a platform that spans not just this country, but the world.  These athletes have the platform and the means to make a difference, as many of them often do.
I want to see athletes step up in a big way to support the victims of the SHES shooting.  Particularly, I want to see the NBA, the New York Knicks and the Brooklyn Nets make a difference for the grieving families of Newtown, Connecticut.  On Wednesday, December 19th, the Knicks and Nets will square off for the 3rd time this season.  Quite honestly, I could care less who wins, as many would agree.  But the opportunity to demonstrate generosity at a time of need exists for the two NBA teams that are about 90 minutes from Newton, and here’s how. 
It’s a simple idea.  It’s financially feasible.  Every player donates $1000 for every point they score.  Each team donates $1000 points for every point the team scores.  And for each point scored in the game, the NBA donates $1000. 
Yes, it seems lofty.  I get it. but think about it.  To players making millions, what is 20k?  For a team worth hundreds of millions, what’s a 100k? And for a league worth billions, what’s 200k? 
Imagine what over a half a million dollars could do for the small community in Connecticut?  It could pay for funerals, afford grieving families time away from work, help repair the school.  It could do more than I can list. 
Again, this is far-fetched and lofty.  But it only took me 15 minutes of my time, so why not give it a shot?  So I ask you all to help.  Tweet this post.  Share it on Facebook.  Email it to your friends.  Anything you can do, spread the word and let’s see if we can make help a difference.